Part of what makes us human is the opportunity to appreciate how much more we are than human. From ancient philosophers through the Enlightenment and today’s most eminent physicists and physicians, not a one of us can hold out our hand and say definitively where it ends, and the rest of the world begins. The Anthropocene makes poignantly and sometimes painfully evident that mountains, rivers, trees and birds are not a background to be gazed upon and appreciated, but part of what and who we are. The delusion of separation—and our seemingly endless ignorance of the mysteries of the universe—is at the very core of feeling entitled to and untroubled by the plunder, commodification and exploitation of what we perceive as “other”—be they other human animals, non-human animals, forests, or ecosystems. Accelerating and existential climate change of the Anthropocene likewise make poignantly, painfully evident just how much we are losing—ours is an age of enormous loss. Indeed, we are facing the impermanence of much if not everything that we hold dear. If we look to myriad and apparently quite disparate creation stories, however, including those of atheists and scientists of all stripes, we find a curious reverence for death, loss, and our own immeasurable ignorance. There is opportunity indeed in accepting both that in our human form, we cannot quite see clearly, and that eventually, every one of us—and everything—will die or otherwise disappear. Perhaps unexpectedly, not despite but amidst this suffering and loss, it is fundamentally an opportunity for experiencing joy.

Presenter: Bonnie Nadzam, Fellow with Harvard University’s Brooks McCormick Jr. Animal Law and Policy Program. Bonnie is an American writer and Zen Buddhist priest. Her poetry, essays and fiction have appeared in Harper's, Orion Magazine, The Iowa Review, Kenyon Review, and many other journals and magazines. Her first novel, Lamb, was the recipient of The Center for Fiction's Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize, translated into several languages and made into an award-winning independent film. Her second novel, Lions, was a finalist for the PEN USA Literary Award in Fiction. She is also co-author of Love in the Anthropocene with Environmental Ethicist Dale Jamieson.

Moderator: Jim Miller, Human Origins Program Broader Social Impacts Committee (BSIC) co-chair

Respondents: Connie Bertka, Human Origins Program Broader Social Impacts Committee (BSIC) co-chair & Rick Potts, Human Origins Program Director